I generally watch the NBA to follow individuals players and overarching storylines - LeBron's continued success, Giannis's rise to stardom, the beauty or futility of team building, depending on what team you're talking about. But, ever since Steve Clifford signed with the Hornets, Charlotte's been home to a watchable, playoff-contending team that's fun to follow. So periodically, I'm just going to talk about how I feel the Hornets are doing this year, just to check in on the one team, invariant of their roster (unless they sign someone like Darren Collison), that I support.
As of today, the Hornets are 14-11, fifth in the East, coming off consecutive ass-kickings from the Cavaliers and Pacers, where the offense sputtered and was utterly incapable of interior defense. Kemba Walker is writing a narrative that will probably get him selected as an All-Star off the bench, putting up 22.8 points on 46.7/41.4/78.4 splits with a PER of 23.04. Nic Batum is actually the leader in minutes, second on the team in points and the leader in assists. Surprisingly, Marco Belinelli is the third leading scorer on the team, providing essential floor spacing with his over 44% three-point shooting.
The X-factor, up to this point of the season, however, is probably Cody Zeller, who's embraced a lesser role, at least in terms of minutes. Zeller's biggest contribution to the Hornets' offense is his precision screening, especially for Walker. Take a look at the clip below: he's shown an ability to wait just long enough to cause a confusion between the guard and big guarding the pick-and-roll and slip to rim for an easy dunk. The other way he's shown utility in the screen-and-roll is to do just the opposite. He sets wide-bodied screens, which give Walker huge amounts of screens. Walker is a king at leading his defender around the screen and pulling up right when his defender is on his hip, often inducing a foul. Zeller's also fourth in the league in screen assists per game, a stat that measures the number of shots created off screens from a player. He's trailing only master screeners, like Marcin Gortat, DeAndre Jordan, and Rudy Gobert.
The issue with this kind of offense is that it just might not sustainable, especially given the lack of shooting surrounding this pick-and-roll. Marvin Williams has turned in a bummer of a shooting season after his breakthrough last year, and Batum's shooting hasn't been anything to write home about. That brings us to the one player on this team that can lift the Hornets from the middle of the pack to the top in the East: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. A year after a nasty injury, MKG has continued to show defensive prowess, from constant pestering of the opposing team's best wing to beautifully timed chase-down blocks.
Now, if MKG can figure out how to either hit a 19+ foot shot or make plays for his teammates off secondary action, the Hornets offense will prosper. He's already shown the ability to crash the glass on offense or duck in for easy dump-offs from Walker or Batum. But he can't operate like Luc Richard Mbah Moute does for the Clippers. He's a cornerstone for the franchise, and after a while, his lack of offense is going to be absolutely unplayable, leading to a lineup that's a gear down from what it can be. Right now, the most played crunch time lineup for the Hornets is Walker and Belinelli at the guards with Batum, Williams, and Zeller in the frontcourt. MKG's hitch in his shot is taking him straight off the floor and bringing in a turnstile on defense at the other wing position.
There's a future that I can divine for this team, where Kemba runs pick-and-rolls with Zeller or pick-and-pops with Kaminsky, with Batum and an unknown future free-agent shooter surrounding the action and MKG ducking in for offensive rebounds or easy finishes. And, on the other side, Walker's lack of defense is entirely hidden by the four above-average to elite defenders flanking him. Maybe this off-season can bring a seasoned frontline defender and a solid 3-and-D player to shore up this lineup. Or maybe Hornets fans have to just be content with a 45 to 48 win team whose ceiling is the second round of the playoffs.
As of today, the Hornets are 14-11, fifth in the East, coming off consecutive ass-kickings from the Cavaliers and Pacers, where the offense sputtered and was utterly incapable of interior defense. Kemba Walker is writing a narrative that will probably get him selected as an All-Star off the bench, putting up 22.8 points on 46.7/41.4/78.4 splits with a PER of 23.04. Nic Batum is actually the leader in minutes, second on the team in points and the leader in assists. Surprisingly, Marco Belinelli is the third leading scorer on the team, providing essential floor spacing with his over 44% three-point shooting.
The X-factor, up to this point of the season, however, is probably Cody Zeller, who's embraced a lesser role, at least in terms of minutes. Zeller's biggest contribution to the Hornets' offense is his precision screening, especially for Walker. Take a look at the clip below: he's shown an ability to wait just long enough to cause a confusion between the guard and big guarding the pick-and-roll and slip to rim for an easy dunk. The other way he's shown utility in the screen-and-roll is to do just the opposite. He sets wide-bodied screens, which give Walker huge amounts of screens. Walker is a king at leading his defender around the screen and pulling up right when his defender is on his hip, often inducing a foul. Zeller's also fourth in the league in screen assists per game, a stat that measures the number of shots created off screens from a player. He's trailing only master screeners, like Marcin Gortat, DeAndre Jordan, and Rudy Gobert.
Now, if MKG can figure out how to either hit a 19+ foot shot or make plays for his teammates off secondary action, the Hornets offense will prosper. He's already shown the ability to crash the glass on offense or duck in for easy dump-offs from Walker or Batum. But he can't operate like Luc Richard Mbah Moute does for the Clippers. He's a cornerstone for the franchise, and after a while, his lack of offense is going to be absolutely unplayable, leading to a lineup that's a gear down from what it can be. Right now, the most played crunch time lineup for the Hornets is Walker and Belinelli at the guards with Batum, Williams, and Zeller in the frontcourt. MKG's hitch in his shot is taking him straight off the floor and bringing in a turnstile on defense at the other wing position.
There's a future that I can divine for this team, where Kemba runs pick-and-rolls with Zeller or pick-and-pops with Kaminsky, with Batum and an unknown future free-agent shooter surrounding the action and MKG ducking in for offensive rebounds or easy finishes. And, on the other side, Walker's lack of defense is entirely hidden by the four above-average to elite defenders flanking him. Maybe this off-season can bring a seasoned frontline defender and a solid 3-and-D player to shore up this lineup. Or maybe Hornets fans have to just be content with a 45 to 48 win team whose ceiling is the second round of the playoffs.
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